MOSCOW - Russia opposes US and possible European oil sanctions against Iran, even if Tehran presses ahead with uranium enrichment which Western powers say serves military goals, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Wednesday

"Regardless of any conditions... be those the conditions in which the Iranian nuclear program expands or others, we are against the application of such measures against Iran," he was quoted by state-run Itar-Tass news agency as saying.

He said new sanctions would not strengthen nuclear non-proliferation.

The United States imposed additional sanctions on Iran last month and the European Union is expected to agree a ban on imports of Iranian oil later this month.